I Know It’s True ‘Cause I Saw It On TV
As a boy growing up in Orono, Maine in the 70’s, one of the best parts of my day was watching the local NBC station (WLBZ) out of Bangor, Maine because they had Eddie Driscoll. Who??? Eddie Driscoll, you ask? Chicago had Bozo the Clown. Philadelphia had Chief Halftown. Well, Bangor, Maine had Eddie Driscoll. Eddie Driscoll was a local media guy who hosted a show called “My Back Yard”. This was not Mr. Driscoll’s first or only TV show in Bangor, but it’s the one I remember the most growing up. He would come onscreen on a set that was resembled the side of a house with a picket fence, and he would stand on the opposite side of the fence (facing the camera), and would talk about the upcoming movie he was about to show, and he would always talk to his puppet dog, Mason Mutt. Now, Mason Mutt and Eddie weren’t seen on screen at the same time because, well, it was Eddie who did the puppeting and voice for the TV pooch. So, when Mason was on, Eddie wasn’t, and vice versa. I LOVED “My Back Yard”, and looked forward to it daily. Another thing Eddie did was hosted an afternoon movie during a segment called "Dialing for Dollars". He would be at his desk, and would give the 'count'......"Three up from the bottom"....."Two up from the top"....(and to this day I have no idea what any of that meant)...and during breaks from the movie, he would reach into a barrell of postcards sent in by the TV audience, and pull out one card. He would call that person, and if they knew what the count was, they would win some amount of money. I'm pretty sure my parents sent in a card, but we never got picked.....but we always knew what the count was.
Mason Mutt and Eddie Driscoll
Although I didn’t follow the career of Eddie (or Mason Mutt) after leaving Orono in the summer of 1983, I always remembered them. A lot of that had to do with the fact that my last name is Mason, so Mason Mutt was a nickname (one of many) that I carried with me during my childhood.
It was with great sadness that I learned over this past weekend that Eddie Driscoll passed away at the age of 81 on Saturday, September 23rd. He had been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease since 1987, and had been out of the spotlight since that time, but his name and legacy lived on throughout the area.
In person, he was very nice (met him as a kid….most kids in the Bangor area met him when he would be at local events), and with his passing many of his TV characters went with him. The saddest part is that not much of his TV career is on tape, so his legacy is left in the memories of Mainers and people from the Maritime provinces in Canada who watched him for so many years. You can check out a rare, but still in existence, clip of Eddie and Mason Mutt here (unfortunately, the other video links didn't work for me...if they work for you, you can check out Eddie in some of his other shows).
In June of 2004, the Bangor Daily News did a nice article about Eddie's career.
Rest in Piece, Eddie…and you too, Mason Mutt. I'm gonna miss yahs, ayuh.
You were both The Finest Kind of Pork.
As a boy growing up in Orono, Maine in the 70’s, one of the best parts of my day was watching the local NBC station (WLBZ) out of Bangor, Maine because they had Eddie Driscoll. Who??? Eddie Driscoll, you ask? Chicago had Bozo the Clown. Philadelphia had Chief Halftown. Well, Bangor, Maine had Eddie Driscoll. Eddie Driscoll was a local media guy who hosted a show called “My Back Yard”. This was not Mr. Driscoll’s first or only TV show in Bangor, but it’s the one I remember the most growing up. He would come onscreen on a set that was resembled the side of a house with a picket fence, and he would stand on the opposite side of the fence (facing the camera), and would talk about the upcoming movie he was about to show, and he would always talk to his puppet dog, Mason Mutt. Now, Mason Mutt and Eddie weren’t seen on screen at the same time because, well, it was Eddie who did the puppeting and voice for the TV pooch. So, when Mason was on, Eddie wasn’t, and vice versa. I LOVED “My Back Yard”, and looked forward to it daily. Another thing Eddie did was hosted an afternoon movie during a segment called "Dialing for Dollars". He would be at his desk, and would give the 'count'......"Three up from the bottom"....."Two up from the top"....(and to this day I have no idea what any of that meant)...and during breaks from the movie, he would reach into a barrell of postcards sent in by the TV audience, and pull out one card. He would call that person, and if they knew what the count was, they would win some amount of money. I'm pretty sure my parents sent in a card, but we never got picked.....but we always knew what the count was.
Mason Mutt and Eddie Driscoll
Although I didn’t follow the career of Eddie (or Mason Mutt) after leaving Orono in the summer of 1983, I always remembered them. A lot of that had to do with the fact that my last name is Mason, so Mason Mutt was a nickname (one of many) that I carried with me during my childhood.
It was with great sadness that I learned over this past weekend that Eddie Driscoll passed away at the age of 81 on Saturday, September 23rd. He had been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease since 1987, and had been out of the spotlight since that time, but his name and legacy lived on throughout the area.
In person, he was very nice (met him as a kid….most kids in the Bangor area met him when he would be at local events), and with his passing many of his TV characters went with him. The saddest part is that not much of his TV career is on tape, so his legacy is left in the memories of Mainers and people from the Maritime provinces in Canada who watched him for so many years. You can check out a rare, but still in existence, clip of Eddie and Mason Mutt here (unfortunately, the other video links didn't work for me...if they work for you, you can check out Eddie in some of his other shows).
In June of 2004, the Bangor Daily News did a nice article about Eddie's career.
Rest in Piece, Eddie…and you too, Mason Mutt. I'm gonna miss yahs, ayuh.
You were both The Finest Kind of Pork.
Labels: Eddie Driscoll, Mason Mutt
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5:01 PM
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